Gustavo Steiner Neves |
Opera History - MUHL 5320-002
Dr. Stacey Jocoy Texas Tech University |
The tenor voice we are used to hearing today is a product of centuries of evolving performance practices. It is a relatively new way of singing that gained and lost its space in the opera history until it established itself in the early nineteenth century. The sounds we are used to hearing in live operas nowadays is very different than the sounds that were being produced when Handel, Mozart or Donizetti were composing their operas. This explains why the tenor voice was not always the most admired or well-regarded in the opera business: it simply sounded different.
This web site is the final project for the graduate Opera History course at Texas Tech University. Here, I will discuss the changes that occurred in the vocal production and technique of the tenor voice, focusing on the early nineteenth century period and Bel Canto era. By studying the role of the tenor in Italian and French opera, I will argue that the changes that led to a higher importance of the tenor voice in opera history was a result of the merging of the vocal traditions of both countries.
The first chapter or section of the web site will provide a general historic review of the tenor voice, from the first operas of Peri and Caccini to the beginning of the Bel Canto. It will also discuss the other voices that were in vogue at part of that time, such as the castrati. The second section focuses on the changes in opera that contributed to growing importance of the tenor voice, and how Rossini had a great role in those changes. The final section deals more specifically with the aspects of the vocal production that changed, as well as discussing the importance of some of the famous tenors of the early nineteenth century.
This web site is the final project for the graduate Opera History course at Texas Tech University. Here, I will discuss the changes that occurred in the vocal production and technique of the tenor voice, focusing on the early nineteenth century period and Bel Canto era. By studying the role of the tenor in Italian and French opera, I will argue that the changes that led to a higher importance of the tenor voice in opera history was a result of the merging of the vocal traditions of both countries.
The first chapter or section of the web site will provide a general historic review of the tenor voice, from the first operas of Peri and Caccini to the beginning of the Bel Canto. It will also discuss the other voices that were in vogue at part of that time, such as the castrati. The second section focuses on the changes in opera that contributed to growing importance of the tenor voice, and how Rossini had a great role in those changes. The final section deals more specifically with the aspects of the vocal production that changed, as well as discussing the importance of some of the famous tenors of the early nineteenth century.